Weston McKennie Fractures Foot, Will Miss USMNT's Last World Cup Qualifiers

It has not been a good week for the U.S. men's national team on the injury front.

Just two days after Gio Reyna suffered a thigh injury playing for Borussia Dortmund, Weston McKennie left Juventus's Champions League last-16 first leg against Villarreal with a fracture of the second and third metatarsals in his left foot. 

The injury will rule McKennie out of the USMNT's final three World Cup qualifying matches, with Juventus confirming Wednesday that he will miss approximately eight weeks. 

During Tuesday's 1-1 draw, the USMNT midfielder went down immediately after a tackle by Pervis Estupiñán in the 81st minute. As he was subbed out, McKennie could hardly make his way off the field, unable to put weight on his left foot and requiring assistance to exit. 

The injury comes at a difficult time for the USMNT, which resumes World Cup qualifying on March 24. The U.S. currently sits in second in the Concacaf standings with three matches remaining—the top three finishers automatically qualify for the World Cup, while the fourth-place finisher goes to an intercontinental playoff—and McKennie will miss them all. Following a trip to what is expected to be a full-capacity Estadio Azteca, the U.S. faces Panama at home and Costa Rica away to close the 14-game competition. 

It's brutal timing for the 23-year-old McKennie, who had come into his own in recent months. He struggled to break into Massimiliano Allegri's Juventus team at the beginning of the season, but he has since become a critical part of the manager's setup. 

And following a disciplinary issue where he broke the national team's COVID-19 protocol in September, McKennie has resumed his place at the top of the USMNT's depth chart. He scored in a pair of qualifiers since, including the second goal in a 2–0 win over Mexico in November and the early opener in frigid conditions in Minnesota against Honduras to close the most recent window.